This invention concerns snowshoes of the type having a boot binding secured to the snowshoe, either permanently or by attachment. Specifically the invention concerns a snowshoe binding with a system of straps easily tightened by the wearer, including a heel strap connected to an arch area strap such that tightening the arch strap draws the heel strap tight.
Snowshoe bindings, and bindings for cleats or other terrain-engaging footgear, are shown in Atlas Snowshoe Co. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,440,827, 5,918,387, 6,374,518, 6,401,310, 6,526,629, 6,694,645 and 6,694,646. U.S. Pat. No. 5,687,491 disclosed a contoured footbed in a boot binding (the term “boot” as used herein refers to a boot or a shoe). U.S. Pat. No. 6,694,646 disclosed a snowshoe harness with buckles and straps configured such that a single pull can tighten the harness down to the boot, and including toe area and arch area straps whose tails were connected together as a loop, such that the user need only pull on the loop. As shown in nearly all the above listed patents, a heel strap is provided to secure the user's boot in the binding, to prevent against pulling back of the boot from the tightened toe and arch areas on the binding during use of the snowshoe or cleat device.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,694,646 described a snowshoe binding with a versatile, adjustable, convenient and efficiently used means for tightening toe and arch straps. That binding system works well, but it would be desirable to allow the user to tighten the heel strap at the same time as tightening one or both of the arch and toe straps, thus to avoid the need for the twisting and bending motion involved in drawing tight a heel strap.
Atlas Snowshoe Co. U.S. Pat. No. 6,694,645 shows a lace binding for a snowshoe wherein the lace tightens harness webbing over the top of the boot and also pulls tight a heel strap.